Our Grading System

We grade our patterns in two ways: the rarity of the pattern and the quality of the envelope. It’s subjective of course, but hopefully it will help your decision-making.

Pattern Availability

We search the Internet for similar patterns. If we find two or three other copies of the pattern we consider this to be commonly available and we price our pattern accordingly. 

If we find just one copy of the pattern, we consider our pattern rare. If we don’t find any record of a pattern anywhere, we call this pattern very rare or extremely rare. 

Some customers care about the quality of the envelope while others do not. We try to describe each envelope fairly so you know what you are getting. Any damage to the pattern envelope is due to age or moving from one location to another. 

Many of our patterns are over 35 years old so one can expect some damage to the envelope. Rest assured, all our patterns are sold in a clear, protective cellophane sleeve for added protection against further damage. 

We have five grades of pattern envelopes: excellent, very good, good, fair, and poor. 

A pattern in excellent condition looks as good as it would if you purchased the pattern in a sewing store today. A pattern in very good condition may have small tears along the top edge or small holes along the sides or button folds. A pattern in good condition may have the same condition as a very good envelope plus a one inch tear along the sides or top. A pattern in fair condition may have all the characteristics of a pattern in good condition but the tears are longer - three inches approximately. We offer just a few patterns with envelopes in poor condition but the patterns themselves are extremely rare so we think they are worth offering.